Machine for spinning concrete poles, columns, pipes, and other concrete units



GOULD MACHINE FOR SPINNING CONCRETE POLES, COLUMNS,

Sept. 11, 1951 PIPES, AND OTHER CONCRETE UNITS Flled Aug, 6, 1947 L/JLmvmmf MM y $001.0

NW m ilm MA I I B Patented Sept. 11 1951 MACHINE FOR SPINNING CONCRETEPOLES, COLUMNS, PIPES, AND OTHER CONCRETE UNITS Harry Gould,WestfielcLErigland Application August 6, 1947, Serial No. 766,604 InGreat Britain April 9, 1942 Section 1, Public Law 690, August 8, 1946Patent expires April 9, 1962 4 Claims.

The present invention relates to a machine for the manufacture of hollowconcrete bodies, such as pipes, columns, poles, and the like, by thespinning process, and has for one object 'to enable simple and lightlyconstructed moulds to be used.

According to the main feature of the present invention the machinecomprises a spinning frame built up of a plurality of longitudinalmembers extending between spaced track wheels supported on driving andidle wheels, carrier members adapted to be clamped round a tubular mouldand adapted to be engaged between said longitudinalmembers, and meansfor clamping said carrier members to the said longitudinals, andaccording to a further feature of the invention said means for clampingsaid carrier mem. bers to said longitudinals are such as to permitadjustment of the carrier frames to centre the mould in relationto thespinning frame.

In the case of the present invention, therefore, moulds are used inassociation with a strongly built spinning frame into which the mouldscan be removably inserted, centralised and fixed. The spinning frame ismade strong enough to take the loads and stresses set up in spinning, sothat the moulds themselves can be of simple and light construction. Aplurality of interchangeable moulds can be used with a single spinningframe, so that the latter may be continuously operated without loss oftime, save for the short periods occupied in loading and unloading themoulds into and out of the spinning frame.

According to one construction for carrying the invention into practicethe spinning frame comprises two or more longitudinal members consistingof rolled steel sections fitted permanently within a pair of spacedtrack wheels located towards the ends of the longitudinals. The trackwheels rest on pairs of driving or runner wheels mounted on a commonpower driven shaft beneath the spinning frame, so that the whole weightof the spinner is borne by said runner wheels. I

At two or more points along their length the moulds are provided orfitted with carrier rings of a diameter to enter the space between thesaid longitudinals, and having runners to facilitate the running of themould into and out of the spinning frame along its lowermostlongitudinal member. When correctly located centrally within thespinning frame the mould is clamped in position by set screws passingthrough the longitudinals which engage with the mould carrier rings.

To facilitate the running of the moulds into and out of the spinningframe, a runway is dis- 'posed adjacent to one or both ends of thespinner, in continuation of the lowermost longitudinal member when theframe is at rest, so that the runners of the mould carrier rings may runfrom the longitudinal of the frame on to the runway.

. 2 By providing a runway at each end of the spinning frame, a new mouldmay be run into one end of the frame at the same time as a filled mouldis run out of the other end of the frame,

way of example in the accompanying drawing, in

which:

Figure 1 is a longitudinal elevation of one construction of machineaccording to the invention;

Figure 2 is a cross-sectional view to a larger scale on the line II-IIof Figure 1; and

Figure 3 is a detail view also to a larger scale of a portion of themould with one of the mould carrier rings applied thereto, and shown inedge elevation. l

The mould consists of a cylindrical or taper tube I, closed at its endsby removable plates 2. one or both of which is or are provided with afilling opening, which is closed after filling, until spinning hascommenced, by a plug, which plug is removed as soon as spinning hasstarted, in order to permit a free circulation of air through the mouldduring spinning and thus facilitate setting of the concrete.

The mould tube I may have no joints therein, or it may, as shown, bedivided longitudinally and flanged along its edges at 3. If of greatlength transverse joints may also be provided. Sufficient concrete isfilled into the mould to give the calculated volume, and thus ofwall-thickness, of the finished post, and as soon as spinning takesplace the concrete becomes thrown out against the wall of the mould, soas to produce an axial cavity in well known manner.

The mould l is rotated by means of a spinning frame into which it isinserted, and from which it is removed after the concrete has set. Thisspinning frame, in the construction illustrated, comprises a pair offlanged track wheels, 4, 4, supported on driving and runner wheels 5journalled in suitable bearings carried by an underframe. There may beany number, exceeding two, of these wheels 5, disposed arcuately tosupport each of the track wheels 4. One opposite pair, at least, of thewheels 5 are mounted on a common cross shaft 6, adapted 'to be driven bypower, as, for example, by means of a chain sprocket l.

Passing through the track wheels 4, and attached permanently thereto,are three longitudinal channel members 8, consisting of rolled steelsections, so that the track wheels 4 are connected together by thelongitudinals 8 to form the spinning frame proper.

Themould I is removably mounted in the spinning frame with the aid oftwo or more car 3 rier members or rings 9, which, as will be seen fromFigures 2 and 3, consist of two parts adapted to be clamped round themould I, by means of screw bolts I!) so as to grip the mould parts ormould flanges 3 between them.

The mould carrier members 9 are built up of spaced plates II, distancesleeves I2, and spacing blocks I3, I4, and when the two parts of thecarrier members are assembled, the carriers are of substantiallyhexagonal shape, with alternate long and short sides, and divided in an'axial plane parallel to one of the long sides. The spacing blocks I3, I4are located at the short sides of the carrier member, and they are eachbored radially and threaded for the purpose hereinafter explained. Thespacing block I4 carries a small wheeled trolley I5.

At points along the longitudinals 8, between the track wheels 4, 4, thelongitudinals are joined together by inclined braces I6 and carry blocksI9 through holes in which screw bolts I'I, fitted with lock nuts 20,pass loosely and extend into the channels of members 8. The carriermembers 9 are clamped on the mould in positions corresponding to theposition of the screw bolts ll of the spinning frame, so that when themould I is inserted into the spinning frame the holes in the blocks I3and I4 of the carriers 9 register with the screw bolts II.

It will be understood that the mould I is insorted axially in thespinning frame, and this operation is facilitated by a channel sectiontrack I8 laid adjacent to one end of the spinning frame, the filledmould ready for loading into the spinnin'g frame being disposed on thetrack formed by said channel section I8 with its trolleys I in thechannel thereof. The spinning frame is then brought into positionaligning one of its longitudinal channel sections 8 with the externaltrack section I8, and the mould I is transferred longitudinally into thespinning frame, its trolleys I5' running along the track I8 and thealigned longitudinal 8, and the other short sides of the carriers 9engaging in the other channel sections 8 of the spinning frame. When themould has been run into the correct position in the spinning frame, thespacing blocks I3, I4 of the carriers 9 come into register with thescrew bolts I1, and these are then screwed up so as to engage in thethreaded holes in the spacing blocks I3 and I I and the lock nuts arescrewed up so as to abut against the blocks I9, thereby holding thewhole mould assembly securely in position in the spinning frame. It

will be understood, of course, that by adjusting the bolts I! and locknuts the mould I can be correctly centered in the spinning frame, so asto be coaxial therewith.

The apparatus is then ready for carrying out the spinning operation,which results from applying driving power to shaft 6. Rotation of wheels5 rotates the track wheels I and thus spins the frame in which the mouldI is fixed. When the spinning operation is finished the mould I isremoved from the spinning frame by reversing the loading operations, andfinally running the mould out of the frame on the loading track I8, oron to a similar track laid at the opposite end of the spinning frame, sothat a new mould for insertion into the frame can always be held readyon track I8. V

The invention is not limited to the above described construction, sincesuch construction may be modified and other constructions devised,within the scope of the invention herein described.

I claim: I

1. A machine for manufacturing centrifugally molded hollow concretebodies, as pipes, columns and the like, comprising spaced coaxial trackwheels, longitudinal members extending between said spaced track wheels,a tubular mold, carrier means adapted to be clamped around said mold.trolley wheels carried by said carrier means, said trolley wheels beingadapted to run along one of said longitudinal members for initiallpositioning said carrier means and mold between said longitudinalmembers, means clamping said carrier means to said longitudinal members,spaced coaxial driving wheels, and means whereby said track wheels areadapted to be supported resting in driving engagement with said drivingwheels.-

2. A machine for manufacturing centrifugally molded hollow concretebodies,- as pipes, columns and the like, comprising a rotatable cageincluding longitudinal member spaced around the'axls of rotation, atubular mold, carrier means adapted to be secured to said mold, trolleywheels carried by said carrier means, said trolley wheels being adaptedto run along one of said longitu dinal members for initially positioningsaid carrier means and mold within said cage, and means securing saidcarrier mean to said cage.

3. A machine for'manufacturing centrifugally molded hollow concretebodies, as pipes, columns and the like, comprising an elongated housingrotatable about a longitudinal axis, a tubular mold, carrier meansadapted to be secured to said mold, trolley wheels carried by saidcarrier means, said carrier means and mold being adapted to beintroduced into said housing at one end thereof and said trolley wheelsto run along the inside of said housing for initially poistioning saidcarrier means and mold within said housing, and means securing saidcarrier means within said housing.

4. A machine for manufacturing centrifugally molded hollow concretebodies as pipes, columns and the like, comprising in combination atubular mold shell, spaced track wheels disposed coaxially with saidmold shell, three longitudinal bars extending circumferentially spacedabout the mold shell between said track wheels and joining the latter,carrier means encompassing said mold shell, clamping means for securingthe carrier means to the longitudinal bars, said clamping meansincluding three screw bolts, each passed loosely through a correspondinghole in one of said bars and engageable with a corresponding threadedhole in the carrier means and three lock nuts each threaded upon one ofsaid bolts and adapted to be screwed into abutment with a surface of therespective bars for center ing the mold shell relative to said trackwheels by relatively adjusting said bolts and nuts, and drive wheelsengageable with said track wheels;

HARRY GOULD.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,771,099 Righe'tto July 22. 19301,865,692 Hume July 5, 1932 2,161,968 Lyons et al June 13, 1939 FOREIGNPATENTS Number Country Date 247,257 Great Britain Feb. 3, 1926

